This post is sponsored by
Tiny Prints. They provide excellent quality printing and amazing printing options to make your holiday cards stand out this year.
I've got 6+ easy ways to embellish your envelopes this year. Don't get stuck with boring print labels or chicken scratch! Make your snail mail pop with a few tips that require little to no technique. :)
If you want to get some technique under your belt, check out
5 Easy Steps for Improving Your Handwriting, or take my
calligraphy class!
Getting fun snail mail is possibly one of my favorite aspects of this time of year. I love getting something other than business offers and bills! Colored envelopes will certainly help make those invites pop.
I went through Tiny Prints for my Christmas cards this year and got one of their
laser-cut designs (See all of their offerings
here). It's unique, well designed and I didn't have to spend a million hours getting it squared away. Major win! I'm dedicated to having enough time to enjoy the holidays this year. No chicken with her head cut off over here, please!
I'm incredibly partial to Kraft envelopes (
greengrocer kraft is fabulous). They work well with both light and dark pens and they stand out in a pile of mail. The envelopes featured in this tutorial are from
Tiny Prints. I've been incredibly impressed how well they handle ink and how easily I can write on them with my super sharp calligraphy nibs.
Next up, gather all random scrapbook supplies you own. Heck, head over to Walmart and browse their crafty section. You'll find some great stuff for next to nothing.
To do the techniques seen above, you'll want to collect a few things:
You'll want a few different patterns of washi tape, and perhaps a few different widths, too. When in doubt, collect all the black, white, gold and silver washi tape you can get your hands on. It goes with practically everything and every season.
You can use any kind of pen for these techniques. I used dip pen and ink for many of these samples, but just use any kind of pen you have. Ballpoint pens, however? NO. Throw all of those out of your house right now. They're terrible. Shame on you for having them around. :)
Learn how to use a pointed pen with my online calligraphy class: IStillLoveCalligraphy.com. I'm happy to teach you! Side note: our kit makes for the perfect gift.
So let's get going, shall we?
When doing your addresses on a straight line, use the chalk pencil and the clear ruler to mark out those lines. Otherwise:
DECORATIVE GUIDELINES
Use washi tape as a decorative way to keep your lines straight.
Tape a vertical and horizontal strip and write in the bottom right section OR use it to slant your baseline. Layer multiple strips of tape for more depth.
RANSOME NOTE
Use alphabet stickers to draw attention to different letters.
For a cursive style, use block letter stickers for the first letter of each name. For block style writing, replace a random letter with a sticker.
I found these stickers at Walmart for about $1-2 each. I'm sure you can find them at just about any craft supply store as well.
AROUND AND AROUND
Use circular sticker labels (I used
Avery 2 1/2" labels) to structure your envelope's layout.
Print or letter just the address within the label (this is great if you want a hand-lettered touch, but you have LOADS of addresses to do) and write the name outside the sticker.
In the top version, I used the border of the label as a baseline and wrote the name around the diameter. It looked a little empty so I drew a little holly berry illustration on there. You could draw something there, or keep it simple and stick the circle in the center of the envelope.
Wrap the label around the back and write the name on a large scale all the way across the envelope.
GLITTER GLUE DETAILS
Glitter glue is my best friend. It's all the sparkle of glitter without the mess of loose glitter everywhere (I swear that stuff multiplies). My favorite brand is
Stickles. Sparkliest of them all.
Pipe out a wavy line in glitter glue. Use that line as your guide for the baseline of the recipient's name.
Or Letter out your address and use glitter glue to add accents on hairlines and at the terminals of each line.
LARGE-SCALE NAME
Grab a marker and go to town! Write out the first name as large as the envelope will allow. Cursive styles work best. I used a
Tombow dual brush marker here. You can use a casual, grungy style nicely. Then letter the rest of the address in a normal style, save for the ZIP. Make the ZIP huge.
ADD SOME BLING
Letter the address as you would prefer then stick some rhinestones on it. Yup. Simple. But it's so fun go get in the mail! I like to use
PVA glue to fasten them on. It's a strong glue that dries clear.
I hope you have some fun sending out mail this year!
*This DIY is free for personal use and should not be distributed/republished without my consent. Altering any files is NOT ALLOWED. If you would like to use this freebie for commercial purposes, please email me. Thanks!
Learn calligraphy online at istilllovecalligraphy.com. You'll learn the basics of pointed pen, flourishing, addressing envelopes and developing your own style. The course comes complete with a beginner kit of supplies and personal coaching from calligraphy experts Melissa Esplin and Erika Paulsen.
Click here to find out more.
Plaid is great for the holidays. I remember decorating our tree in my youth with wrapped boxes of raisins in plaid wrapping paper. We used those boxes for 15 years at least. We never took the raisins out of the boxes, so I chuckle at the thought of 15 year old raisins. Now that I think about it, I wish I could find that cool plaid wrapping paper again. It had a linen texture to it which was really neat.
This is the exact outfit I will be wearing to my Grandparents' Christmas party. It's a casual party, but we still like to get dressed up. No need for a dress, but nice slacks will do. These rayon trousers from Lulu*s are absolutely perfect. I look dressed up, but I feel like I'm wearing pajamas. The rayon is dreamy.
I made the top to go with. I did a v-neck variation of the simple woven blouse (here). I was going to make a little collar, but as I was putting it together, it looked terrible. I ended up just putting a bow in its place to dress it up and keep it from looking like a scrubs top.
I'm happy with how it turned out, but I'm excited to switch back to knits for my next project. I have it all cut out and everything. I can't wait.
What will you wear to your Holiday parties this year?
Outfit details:
At church I'm in charge of the activities for our women's group. We meet at least quarterly for spiritual, service-oriented, social or creative activities. When we were planning I knew I wanted to make a little keepsake/quiet book for adults and children alike to be reminded of the true purpose in Christmas: Christ's birth. I'm glad I worked on this project. It's been a busy time of year with a lot of work (a fabulous problem to have, for that I'm humbly grateful!), so carving out time to research symbols of Christmas and coordinating scripture was a great way to get in the spirit.
This printable by no means includes all of the symbols of Christmas (I realized I left out the wreath - oops), the 7 included simply serve as a prompt for discussion and pondering on the other things around us that remind us of Christ and God.
I wanted it to be something that could be enjoyed by kids and adults alike, so I made little calligraphed illustrations that could be colored and kept the design simple to appeal to adults. It's all small enough that it can easily fit in a purse to be toted around all season long (even though it's almost at it's end).
I printed off a few and plan to give them to my grandparents and parents this year. The ones we made for our women's group activity were a huge hit. We prepped 30 kits and even though we didn't have 30 in attendance, all were spoken for! It was a thrill to see women take extras to share with others.
The book includes symbols on: The evergreen tree, the star of Bethlehem, the candle, the poinsettia, the candy cane, the stocking and holly berries. At the end there are a couple of pages for thoughts so you could use it as a holiday journal or as a way to write your personal thoughts on the season to give to someone else. Or write in some of your favorite holiday traditions/memories.
Each symbol has a brief explanation and a scripture. Each scripture is taken from the King James version of the Bible. Mostly from the New Testament.
To assemble, you will need:
I mean, come on. When given the option to wear elasticized joggers/leggings or wearing poorly fitting pre-pregnancy pants, one is always going to go for the most amount of elastic. Let's be real here, my pants only fit when I'm fastening them with an extra bit of elastic (
I've had this tribal-esque sweater knit for nearly a year, in the hopes to make a pair of joggers. After obsessing over 
Seriously, this is an outfit I plan on throwing on often. I've been utterly slammed with family things and work this last month, so I've rarely been able to get out of my pajamas. These pieces are effortless and fun. Perfect for those pajama days, but without looking like a disheveled mess (because my pajamas aren't cute).
Outfit details:
Thanks to 
Now that the filing cabinet is gone (it's now in Chris's office closet), Penelope can sit with her back facing the wall so she feels less secluded and more involved in family happenings.
Those tip-prone pink boxes had to go. I cleared out her unused supplies as well and fit all her good supplies in a little plastic caddy she can take with her anywhere. All of her supplies go and everything has a place. Since the compartments are clear, it's easier for her to keep track of where things are supposed to go.
No more stray supplies. They stay contained!
I found some 
The updates are very subtle, but have made such a huge difference to keep the hallway clear of debris. It's so great to walk to my room without stepping on scissors and shards of paper!
It's been a thrill to see Penelope's artistic side flourish, particularly in these last few months. She has such a wild imagination, I hope she keeps going in this awesome direction!
